'ie toga (fine mat)

In Samoa a special type of mat - the 'ie toga - is never used on the floor of a fale (house), but plays an important part in Samoan culture. 'ie toga or fine mats are the most precious type of mat and represent most of the indigenous forms of wealth for Samoan families.

'Ie toga are exchanged and presented at weddings and funerals, and at special occasions such as the blessing of a newly-built fale (house) or the opening of a church. At funerals 'ie toga are given to the family of the deceased and gifts of mats and food are given in return. These exchanges display a mutual respect that enforces family ties. On other ocassions 'ie toga may be worn as a ceremonial garment around the waist.

Significance

This fine example of an 'ie toga was given to J C Westland in 1922 by prominent Samoan leader Tupua Tamasese Lealofi III. Mr Westland was in charge of the Samoa Observatory in Apia from early 1921.

Materials and manufacture

This 'ie toga is made from a smaller variety of pandanus known as lau'ie and preparing the weaving materials can take many days. Once prepared by soaking, drying and bleaching in the sun, the leaves are slit into thin strips - the thinness of the strips determining the fineness of the mats. Weaving the 'ie toga can take a long time - even years. In the 19th century, young women would start their own mats or complete ones started by older sisters.

Today, it is more common for mats to be woven by a group of women working in a fale lalaga (weaving house). A defining feature of 'ie toga is an unwoven fringe and a strip of red feathers. These feathers were originally from Samoan or Fijian parakeets but nowadays dyed chicken feathers are substituted. The marks of a well-made fine mat are its softness, shine and fineness, but often it is the associations the 'ie toga has with people and events that is most important.

This 'ie toga is distinctive because it is stamped in several places with a partially illegible rectangular rubber stamp (purple ink) the only decipherable word on which is Tamasese. 'Tofai' is hand written on another part of the cloth in pencil.

Acquisition history

A newspaper report from 1938 reported the following acquisition details:

"Although the Dominion Museum already possesses a number of Samoan cloaks (sic), one just added to the Polynesian collection is of special interest. This fine cloak, of planted pandanus leaf, was once the property of Tamasese, a high Samoan chief who was killed during a disturbance some years ago.

Many years earlier Tamasese had presented the cloak to Mr J. C. Westland, who was then stationed at the Apia Observatory, He in turn presented it to his daughter, Mrs H, F. Dykes, who has now given it to the Dominion Museum. The cloak is beautifully woven and has a scarlet border of feathers, and to a Samoan such a cloak is of more significance than a mere article of apparel."

Source: (Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22355, 19 March 1938, Page 16).